A lot of churches in South Carolina are studying Rick Warren's best-selling book, "The Purpose-Driven Life." So are prison inmates in California and Maryland.

In California, the book is credited with helping to reduce prison violence by nearly 40%. Prison officials also hope it will help inmates make their transition back into society.

In Maryland, more than 125 inmates have signed up for the study at a facility in Hagerstown. Organizers hope to offer the program in all of Maryland's 27 prisons as well as to inmates in Virginia and Washington, D.C.